Congratulations, Hoka Skills Day 2023!

Upskilling and Reskilling, Labour market insertion, Sustainable tourism
31.03.2023
The Hospitality Kampuchea (HoKa) Steering Committee of the Ministry of Tourism hosted its first HoKa Skills Day 2023 under the theme of “Tourism Skill is your Life” to promote hospitality skills in Cambodia on March 30, 2023, at Sokha Residence Hotel, Phnom Penh.

The HoKa Skills Day 2023 was an exceptional occasion to celebrate the initiatives and spark achievements of the implementation of the HoKa training programme for low-skilled workers, trainers, assessors, managers, and tourism business owners throughout 10 target provinces nationwide.

The ceremony was presided over by H.E. PAK Sokhom, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Tourism and Chairman of HoKa Steering Committee, H.E. Lao Him, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, and Mr. Rajiv Pradhan, Country Director of Swisscontact, with the participation of the president of the Tourism Industry Association, and a total of 260 participants including government officials, representatives from the private sector, national and ASEAN trainers and students.

The panel discussions brought together relevant speakers with many years of knowledge and experience in skills development for youth to share their perspectives and gather key inputs to enhance the quality and quantity of tourism professionals. Furthermore, all participants had the opportunity to explore specific topics including (1) tourism qualification and care path development for tourism professionals and low-skilled workers; (2) initiatives for labor resilience post covid-19; and (3) private sector involvement in tourism professionals' career path development. 

The event also featured the HoKa skills demonstration by target Provincial Departments of Tourism on bed making, table setup, napkin folding, cocktail, barista, and wine services.

"I strongly believe that tourism training providers, tourism operators, tourism professionals, private sector, development partners, and all relevant stakeholders will work closely to effectively and efficiently implement the HoKa training programme. With all your extensive collaboration, Cambodia will be capable of developing qualified tourism human resources and becoming a welcoming and charming tourist destination."
H.E. PAK Sokhom, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Tourism and Chairman of HoKa Steering Committee.

Up to the present time, approximately 3,000 disadvantaged youths and low-skilled workers received training and capacity building throughout the ten target provinces.

"It is a dream come true for all of us that HoKa has become an important industry-based instrument to reskill and up-skill hospitality workers in Cambodia. We have reached that milestone of that dream."
Mr. Rajiv Pradhan, Country Director of Swisscontact.

The HoKa training programme, supported by the Skills Development Programme, a project of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, offers various skills including Front Office, Housekeeping, Foos and Beverage Services, Cooking, Basic Barista Skills, Cocktail, Community-Based Tourism, and Community-Based Eco-tourism (CBT/CBET) capacity training, and community tour guide. HoKa focuses on quality training delivery to low-skilled workers, training of trainers, training of assessors through professional coaching programmes, Professional Industry Placement (PIP), and HoKa 4.0 based on the endorsed training handouts.

Cambodia
Initial vocational education and training, Labour market insertion, Sustainable tourism
Skills Development Programme
The overall goal of the Skills Development Programme (SDP) is for disadvantaged young women and men and low-skilled workers in five rural provinces of Cambodia (Preah Vihear, Stung Treng, Kratie, Mondulkiri and Rattanakiri) to gain access to decent employment and increased income.